The latest news and notes from Spring Training with fantasy analysis.

Cliff Lee threw off a mound on Wednesday for the first time since having minor foot surgery a few weeks ago.  His numbers may go up this year since he's been shipped back to the AL, but if his numbers from Cleveland are any indication, he can still put up a good line and serve as a solid SP1-2.  He's also in a contract year, and given that he was shipped to Seattle because Philadelphia couldn't meet his financial demands for a long-term deal, he may be looking for a big pay day after this season.  Take that however you will, but he looks poised for another successful season in Seattle, and as long as he continues to heal like this his foot shouldn't be an issue when the season starts up for real in April.  Keep your eyes glued to injury reports, and if the news stays good, draft with confidence.

Daisuke Matsuzaka, one of the most frustrating players in all of fantasy baseball last year, is already dealing with a sore back after struggling through injuries for most of last season but will throw off a mound soon after a few successful long-toss workouts.  No one seems to have much faith in Dice-K this year, but if this injury clears up before the season starts there are worse endgame picks you could take in your draft.  His stellar 2008 season was built on pillars of sand (80% strand rate, .267 BABIP, 5.05 BB/9) but if he stays healthy he'll accrue strikeouts while assassinating your WHIP.  Still, Dice-K is a name-brand player, so if he gets off to a hot start and looks like a top-20 pitcher early in the year, he's makes a great sell-high candidate.  Projections are all over the map for Matsuzaka, with Marcel projecting only 106 IP, 8W, and a 4.42 ERA, and Bill James projecting 195 IP, 12 W, and a 4.02 ERA - don't spend anything more than a flier on this guy in the last rounds. 

Josh Hamilton bruised his shoulder on Wednesday, doing little to assuage owners' fears that he is a major injury liability going into this season.  While no one can really say whether Hamilton's body can handle the stress of playing day in and day out after all he's put it through, it is clear that Hamilton has a track record for missing time during the year and it wouldn't surprise me to see him land on the DL with another soft-tissue strain or something equally frustrating.  Yes, this most recent injury is relatively minor (X-rays came back negative) and was the result of a freak diving play chasing down a pop-up, but last year alone he suffered from a torn abdominal muscle that required surgery, and later pinched a nerve in his back.  Buyer beware.   

Hamilton's newly-acquired teammate Vladimir Guerrero has said he is willing to man the outfield if called upon to do so.  Let's hope for his sake (and for fantasy owners as well) that he can stay a full-time DH, where he can avoid the wear and tear injuries that have sidelined him frequently over the past few seasons.  The free-swinging Ranger makes an intriguing buy-low as he moves to a pure hitter's park, but his numbers have mostly been trending downward, so don't reach for him when a lot of spry youngsters can be had in later rounds (speedster teammate Julio Borbon comes to mind) and don't carry the same level of risk.  Then again, few players going in the late-14th round have as good of a shot at 25 HR and a .300 average as Vlad does in his new Texas digs... 

Brandon Webb threw a 45-pitch bullpen session on Thursday and looks on track to start the D-backs 3rd game this season behind Dan Haren and Edwin Jackson.  

The Nationals have announced that rookie (and object of much adulation) Stephen Strasburg will face his first Major League opponent on March 9th against the Detroit Tigers.  While it's still fairly early in Spring Training, Strasburg's performance will bear watching because every game will count towards the Nats' decision to keep him in the minors or promote him to the big-league club right away.  My bet is for an early-to-mid-June call-up, since most reports indicate he is just too good to languish in the minors all season.  

The Nats will do their best to hold him back and restrict his service time for as long as possible, but don't be surprised if he's called up sooner than later - most scouts believe he is already prepared and talented enough to take over the #1 spot in the Washington rotation (a bit of a dubious honor).  If you are in a keeper league, do whatever you can to land Strasburg; he is the hands-down top candidate for NL Rookie of the Year and likely to be an effective fantasy starter from day one.  I know I will have MLB.tv tuned to this game so I can see just how talented the number one pick really is.

Johnny Damon comes to Detroit after a bizarre offseason for the Motor City's front office in which they parted ways with a young, underpaid superstar (Curtis Granderson) and replaced him with an aging, overpriced free agent.  Damon is coming off a campaign in which he blasted 24 HR and swiped 12 bases in the hitter's heaven that is New Yankee Stadium.   

Manager Jim Leyland has already stated that Damon is likely to hit second behind rookie (and former Yankees prospect) Austin Jackson, but could also take over leadoff duties.  The only thing you should be worried about in this situation is whether Jackson gets plenty of opportunities to steal bases in the leadoff spot.  Damon will be overvalued in drafts and virtually no one expects him to top the 20 HR plateau moving to Comerica Park. 

First reports about another heralded pitching prospect, recent Cuban defector Aroldis Chapman, have been positive.  Like Strasburg, Chapman has huge upside as a starter in the major leagues, but also an uncertain future over the next season as the Reds try to pace his development and avoid putting too much pressure on him. News like this usually serves as fluff to get fans excited for the upcoming year, so don't bother trying to figure out whether Chapman is worth drafting until he starts pitching in real games over the next week or so and the Reds share more about their plans for him.  Chapman is likely to start the year at AA or AAA, but is also a candidate for a mid-season call-up, especially if injury strikes or former stud-prospect Homer Bailey can't get the job done.

Finally, in a bit of weird, only-slightly-baseball-related news, the Cubs' top draft pick Brett Jackson said he supports blood testing minor leaguers for HGH use, and even suggested he enjoys the drug-testing process.  A Chicago Sun-Times subsidiary quoted him saying, "I was telling (teammate Josh Vitters) when they were sucking my blood out (for annual physicals), I kinda liked it.  Isn't that weird?  That's weird.  I enjoyed it.  I like blood."  Vitters wasn't quite as enthusiastic of blood-tests himself: "I would rather see some sort of urine test than a blood test, because of some people that might have problems with needles."  True Blood and Twilight fans are no doubt excited to see these guys reach the majors in the coming years, while regular baseball fans are probably just excited to see a younger generation of players eager to clean up the game and restore its reputation.

Info and stats come from MLB.com, Rotoworld.com, and Fangraphs.com

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